


Dessert

by alley_oops, jennandanica



Series: Citadel: Sam Worthington and Ryan Kwanten [178]
Category: Actor RPF, Australian Actor RPF, Citadel (Journalfen RPG), True Blood RPF
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-29
Updated: 2018-03-29
Packaged: 2019-04-14 15:31:03
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,253
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14139012
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alley_oops/pseuds/alley_oops, https://archiveofourown.org/users/jennandanica/pseuds/jennandanica
Summary: This is a re-posting (archiving) of all logs for the Sam Worthington/Ryan Kwanten storyline in the BDSM RPS RPGCitadel.





	Dessert

**Author's Note:**

> This is a re-posting (archiving) of all logs for the Sam Worthington/Ryan Kwanten storyline in the BDSM RPS RPG [Citadel](http://citadel.dreamwidth.org/read).

Jessica smooths a strand of glossy red hair into place in her messy bun, then rings the doorbell and waits, listening for any sign of her hosts. She's a little nervous, really. Will Sam's partner - boyfriend - be as understanding of their previous screwing around as Sam insisted he will be? Even as casual as it was. It took her forever to decide on what to wear this evening, not wanting to send a message, or at least not the wrong message. She eventually settled on a cobalt blue halter dress with a big paisley print, showing cleavage but not too much, and just skimming the tops of her knees when she's standing in her nude slingbacks. For L.A., she figures she practically looks like a nun, so hopefully that will be demure enough for Sam's mystery man.

"Sam?" Ryan yells from the kitchen, elbow-deep in pastry dough. "Can you get that? My hands are a mess."

"Yup. On my way," Sam yells back, having taken the time to throw a suit jacket over his white shirt and jeans. He opens the front door and pulls Jessica inside. "Hey. You look beautiful," he says, giving her a quick kiss on the cheek and guiding her into the house, the door closed behind them.

"Thank you," she says with a smile, and actually has to catch herself before she puts her arms around his neck and demands a more thorough kiss. "You look delicious. All dressed up," she teases, and hands him a bottle of good Cabernet.

"Yeah, wait til Ryan sees me," Sam says with a grin and a thanks for the wine. He takes her hand and leads her through to the kitchen and living room.

As always when Ryan cooks, he's got his iPod on its speakers, and today he's singing along to Mark Lanegan. He looks up when Sam enters the kitchen, and grabs a dish towel to wipe his hands.

Jessica's first impression of Sam's partner is _Biceps, god!_ , bulging from a faded surf t-shirt. She wrenches her gaze up and smiles when she sees that Ryan has a smudge of flour on his cheek. He's absolutely fucking adorable. "Hi," she says, shaking his offered hand. "I'm Jessica. It's so nice to meet you."

"Yeah, it's good to meet you, too," he murmurs, feeling a bit shy. She is so beautiful. "You were absolutely amazing in The Debt."

"Thank you." She twinkles at him, feeling a little more at ease. Not only is there no obvious hostility radiating off Ryan, but she thinks he might actually be more nervous about this than she is. "That's sweet of you."

It's good to see the two of them take a liking to each other right away. "Jessica brought this," Sam says, placing the wine on the counter. "Anything I can do to help?" He's already set the table and washed up a lot of the dishes.

"Yeah, yeah," Ryan says, distractedly looking around and trying to make sure he's still keeping track of all the details. "Let me just..." He takes a clean tea towel and lays it over the dough before setting it back on the counter to rise. "Could you open the wine, Sam? I just need to clean up." He focuses on his lover for the first time since Sam came down after changing his clothes, and he blinks. "You look really fucking hot," he whispers in passing, and heads upstairs to their bedroom.

Biting her lip on a smile, Jessica watches him go, but then her grin escapes. "Oh my _god_ , Sam," she exclaims, keeping her voice down for just the two of them. "Nice job!"

Sam grins. "He's really fucking hot, isn't he?" He locates a corkscrew and opens the wine, leaving it to breathe for a bit. "Can I get you something else to drink? There's some white in the fridge, there's a whole bar if you want something mixed..."

"Bloody Mary?" Jessica asks hopefully. "Extra spicy? And tell me... tell me more about Ryan." She giggles, completely tickled by the whole thing. Sam, settled down. With a guy. A _hot_ guy. "Tell me about you two." Okay, so she's absolutely trolling for dirty details, but she knows that Sam will tell her if she crosses a line, and that he probably won't be offended regardless.

"Well, I told you he's a songwriter and we met in a hotel bar," Sam says, moving around as he makes Jessica's drink. "Ended up going back to my room and fucking like bunnies." He grins at her. "We'd been seeing each other for about a week and then I had to go back to Aus for a bit and I made some comment about wishing he could go with me and he said he could and... yeah. He's just. He's fantastic. He's smart and funny - the sex is _fantastic_ \- and he loves travelling, takes good care of me." He bites at his lip as he hands over her drink. "And actually, I'm so love in him I asked him to marry me."

She's grinning in giddy fascination as he goes along, right up until that last bit. And then Jessica simply stares. "Oh, my god. Are you serious? Marriage?"

Sam nods. "Yeah. I put a ring on his finger but we agreed not to actually do anything about it for a few years. At that point, hopefully things will have changed, or I guess I'll take a step back, maybe do more small Indies. He wants kids so stepping back wouldn't be the worst thing. Not at that point."

"Well shit, Sam." Jessica takes a large swallow of her drink and coughs a little before handing it back. "More tabasco. You're really fucking serious about this. I mean, all domestic and monogamous and everything?"

"I don't know about the monogamous part..." Sam says, ducking his head a little, his eyes sparkling as he adds more tabasco to her glass.

"Wait. What?" She swirls her glass and takes another sip, then shakes her head and holds it out again. "More vodka. You're not monogamous with each other?"

_Just in time_ , Ryan thinks, Jessica's words pulling him up short as he steps barefoot into the kitchen. "Sorry for interrupting," he mumbles, and opens the refrigerator to start loading up his arms with serving dishes. "I'm just getting the food."

"Oh god, no, I'm sorry!" Jessica insists, looking at him imploringly. "No, no, of course you're not interrupting anything. It's your house! Here, let me help you. I was just being nosy, don't mind me."

Sam chuckles, watching them. "We've been known to sleep around, usually both of us with someone else," he tells her, nudging his hip against Ryan's with a wink as he takes a couple of dishes from him. "You want these on the table?"

"Um. Yeah." Ryan swallows around a lump in his throat, feeling flustered. He opens one of the upper cabinets and gets three wine goblets, then takes the bottle in his other hand. At the table he busies himself unnecessarily with rearranging things to his liking, just trying to keep his hands occupied.

"Someone else?" Jessica raises an eyebrow and sits down where Sam indicates, then takes a large swallow of her Bloody Mary. God, she wants to ask, wants to ask... Shit! Well, she certainly knows Sam well enough. She can only hope that this guy he's chosen to spend his life with has a personality as laidback as his own. "And what does a person have to do to get on that 'someone else' list?"

Holy fuck. Sam stares at Jessica for a moment, his gaze flickering to Ryan, not sure exactly how to answer that. "Usually they'd have to be male for starters," he says slowly, "since Ryan identifies as gay. But we've had this fantasy for a while..." He looks to his lover again.

Ryan stares at Sam like his lover's just ordered him to dance naked on the dinner table. _What???_ But then he remembers, and his eyes narrow at Jessica in speculation. "Have you ever been with two men before?" he asks tentatively. "At the same time, I mean?" He doesn't want to start assuming things.

Her face is heating up again, _damn_ it. At least soon she'll be able to start blaming it on the alcohol. "Yeah," she answers, but then feels compelled to add, "once." She shrugs and tries for a casual grin. "You know, one in front, one in back..." God.

Sam swallows hard, his jeans a whole lot tighter than they were five minutes ago. "Were they involved at all, or were they hands off when it came to each other?"

"Were they...? Oh. No," Jessica answers with a shake of her head. "I was very much a barrier between them," she says with a smile and a roll of her eyes.

Suddenly reminded that he actually has someone to feed who might eat vegetables, Ryan passes her a bowl of tabouleh, fragrant with fresh mint, then nudges the falafel closer. "Would it bother you if you weren't?" he asks, handing Sam a heavy platter of lamb shwarma. "I mean." He's not immune to blushing, himself. "Would you be okay if Sam touched me in front of you?"

"Thanks," Sam murmurs, keeping his ears open, his eyes flickering from Ryan to Jessica and back again as he places some shwarma on his plate and reaches for the pita bread. Given how much more of an issue this whole thing is for Ryan, he's happy to let his lover handle at least some of the 'negotiations'.

"Would I be okay with it?" Jessica echoes, giving Ryan a slyly incredulous look. "Are we...?" She looks from Ryan to Sam, then knocks back the last of her drink, and hands the empty glass to Sam. She scoops chopped tomatoes onto her falafel, then drowns her sandwich with tahini, smiling. "I would _love_ to watch the two of you. Together." God, she's getting so wet just thinking about it.

That certainly sounds like an enthusiastic endorsement. Ryan raises an eyebrow at his lover, then reaches to take Jessica's glass. "I'll get that."

"No, no, sit," she urges him, "Sam knows how I like it." Testing, Jessica reaches out and takes Ryan's hand in hers. "If you two are feeling out my comfort zone, then I think I need to know a bit more about yours," she tells him with a grin. "Does it make you uncomfortable if I touch you?"

Looking down at her slim graceful fingers in his palm, Ryan shrugs. "We could hold hands all day if you want."

"Okay." She nods, aware that Sam is closely listening in. "But what are we really talking about here?" she asks, her voice dipping down into a more sultry timbre. "If I take all my clothes off and start riding your boyfriend's cock, is that going to bother you?"

_God. Damn._ Ryan can't help but like this woman. Her boldness reminds him of Diane, a woman back in Australia last year who tried to squeeze herself in between Ryan and Sam. But Jessica is doing it with a hell of a lot more charm. "That depends," he says, linking his fingers with hers. "Am I going to be inside you as well, and leaning over your shoulder to kiss the hell out of my boyfriend?"

Sam gets Jessica another drink, his cock growing harder by the second as he listens to the two of them. At Citadel, he wouldn't give this kind of conversation a second thought. But here, in their home, with someone who isn't even a member? This sure as hell isn't the way he thought the evening would be going. And that sure as hell isn't a complaint.

Jessica can't help squirming just a little. "Yeah, I think that sounds like a good plan," she says softly, grinning at Ryan.

"I think it sounds like a great plan," Sam says, unable to keep silent at this point as he hands Jessica her drink and takes his seat again. "But the real question is whether Ryan thinks it's a great plan." He reaches across the table, laying his hand over Ryan's free one. "You can say no if you want. It's totally okay. Having a fantasy doesn't always mean you actually want it to come true." And the last thing Sam wants here, he tries to communicate with his eyes, is Ryan saying yes as his _boy_. This is Ryan's decision and he's going to be good with it either way.

Ryan's face flushes hot again, and he drops his gaze to the table. "I can't go down on you," he murmurs, and forces himself to look up and meet Jessica's eyes again. "No offense. I'll just leave that bit to Sam. And... I do need to be the man in back, like you said." He's not going to put himself again through the emotional agony that he dealt with after sleeping with that girl in Australia last year.

Jessica bites her lip, but she's still smiling. "I'm not offended," she assures him quietly. She takes a fortifying sip of her fresh drink.

"Sounds like that's settled," Sam says with a smile, watching them together. Christ. "But maybe we should finish dinner first? Jessica can tell us all about the last time she slept with two guys," he teases, eyes sparkling.

" _Sam!_ " Jessica exclaims, but then reflects that perhaps indignant modesty is a bit out of place, just now. "Oh, okay." She laughs and takes a bite of her pita sandwich, then demurely wipes her lips with her napkin. "It was my high school boyfriend, the guy I lost my virginity to. But we didn't actually do it when I was in high school, you know? We never quite made it. He came too fast. God." She laughs again, pressing a hand to her forehead. Something about Sam just disarms her, always has. "It was years later, when I was on a break from college. And he was going into the navy the next day, and he'd gotten totally loaded. And his friend was there..." she shrugs. "John was drunk. I was kind of drunk. But I don't think his friend quite was, you know? I think he was playing me."

"You... you don't seem overly disturbed by that possibility," Ryan points out with a laugh, since Jessica is obviously pretty comfortable with her story.

Sam laughs too, polishing off his first glass of wine and adding some more tahini to his shwarma. Waiting for Jessica to respond.

"Well, in retrospect..." she trails off with a laugh, and shrugs again. "I mean, if you had asked me at the time, I'm sure I would have acted totally outraged. But it was a fantasy I'd been wanting to try for years. And I probably wouldn't have admitted that if I'd been sober."

God, she's totally cute. Ryan can see why Sam would've wanted to get some of that on himself. "I'm sober," he offers with a wink. "I will readily admit that I've wanted to have two men at the same time."

Jessica cracks up. "And have you?"

"I have, yeah. I'm not ashamed to say it," Ryan laughs, and gives his lover a grin.

Sam laughs and grins back. "A couple of times," he tells Jessica then gives Ryan another downright wicked grin. "You'll have to take your piercing out."

"Your-- what?" Jessica looks at Ryan in surprise. Then back to Sam. "What piercing are we talking about?"

Ryan shoots his lover a _look_ , because he can see that Sam is enjoying this -- and probably way too much. "I have, um. A piercing," he says quietly, glancing up at her and then back down at his plate. "Actually, I have a few."

Her mouth drops open and she just gapes at Ryan. Then she starts to giggle. "Oh, my god. No," she says, shaking her head. "I mean, yes, take... whatever, out, but not until you let me see them first."

Sam cracks up. "You heard her," he says, reaching for the wine bottle and refilling his glass. "More?" He tops up Ryan's as well.

"No..." Ryan says, too late. He gives Sam a mock glare. "You know wine makes me sleepy. And I haven't made dessert yet."

"Maybe you should make dessert after," Sam suggests with a completely unrepentant grin.

"Yeah, right, like I'll be vertical afterwards," Ryan mumbles, thinking of when he and Sam have had threesomes together in the past. Somehow Ryan always passes out, and pretty much immediately.

"Well, wait, what's for dessert?" Jessica asks, all seriousness, then she grins. "Kidding. But I told you guys my big story," she says, licking a last taste of baba ganoush off her finger, then sitting back with her drink. "Trade. Tell me about one of the times you two tag-teamed someone else. Anyone I know?"

Sam laughs. "Usually Ryan's the one being tag-teamed," he says. "But the first time he and I were with someone else -- no names," he clarifies, because Alex would fucking kill him. "The other guy and I fucked Ryan at the same time and then later on, I sucked the other guy off and fucked him while Ryan watched and sucked him off again."

Jessica blinks, trying to absorb all that at once. It's just so much to think about, god, all that naked hot male flesh... she's assuming the other guy was hot, anyway. "That's really... wait." Her gaze narrows, going from Sam to Ryan and then back again. "What do you mean, at the same time?" She turns her head to stare at Ryan.

Ryan squirms in his chair, uncomfortable under that sharp blue gaze. "He means, at the same time."

She raises an eyebrow. "What?" Realization dawns that Ryan really _means_ it, and Jessica's mouth drops open. "Wait, do you mean you had two guy's dicks in your ass at the _same time?_ "

This is just too much fun. Christ. "He's also had two hands," Sam says, reaching for more shwarma since Jessica's not eating any. "Ask him about that."

" _Sam_. Jesus." Ryan covers his face with his hands. It's obvious Jessica keeps to the fairly vanilla side of things, in spite of her two-on-one fantasy. Why Sam has to go and embarrass him like this... Well, it's not like he'd pass up the opportunity, Ryan knows that.

"...Two hands?" Okay, before, Jessica was surprised. But now she's flat-out stunned. "People actually do that?" she whispers, although she couldn't explain why. It just feels like such a _secret_ thing to be discussing. "I thought that was just in porn. Like, not really real."

"I'm sorry," Sam says, ducking his head a little, his grin slightly sheepish. But he was curious to see how far this open and slightly kinky streak of Jessica's goes, especially when he's never had a clue to it before. Of course once she sees Ryan's tattoo... "I shouldn't've said anything. But yeah, it's something people do. Women too," he tells her. "On both ends of things."

"I'm going to go make dessert," Ryan mutters, his cheeks flaming as he scrapes his chair back from the table and stalks into the kitchen.

"Um." Jessica watches him go, then looks back at Sam, a little alarmed. "You've certainly given me a lot to think about," she says with a nod. "Do you need to go take care of that?"

Sam blows out a breath and nods, following Ryan into the kitchen. "I'm sorry," he says, leaning against the counter beside his lover. "I went too far. I shouldn't've said what I said."

Ryan nods and continues rolling out the pastry dough, his lips tight. "She's vanilla, Sam," he whispers after long moments. "Not from Citadel. You could have warned me that I don't have any secrets anymore."

Shit. "I'm sorry," Sam says, feeling like a real fucking heel, his chest tight and aching for his boy. "I really mean it. You're right. I got carried away and I shouldn't have shared what I shared."

Again, Ryan nods, trying to sort his thoughts out. Maybe they should just call the whole plan off, and spend the evening with Sam and Jessica sharing laughs from when they worked together. Except that avoiding the issue won't make it disappear, and Ryan can't stand it when he and Sam have a rift between them; he'd just feel miserable and sick to his stomach all night anyway. "Okay," he whispers, carefully cutting circles from the dough for tarts. He glances at his lover. "Do you think she's going to be able to handle my tattoo?"

"I don't know," Sam says softly. "She knows you've got piercings, she knows you've taken two guys... she shouldn't be too shocked by anything at this point." He smiles and leans in, kissing the curve of Ryan's jaw. "I didn't invite her here tonight hoping this would happen. It's not too late to change our minds and just enjoy dessert, talk about work. I just want you to be happy and forgive me for being such an ass."

"I always forgive you. Every time you act like an idiot," Ryan tells him, unable to resist such a rare opportunity to get in a dig like that. Surrendering, he wraps his arms around Sam and kisses him, careful to not get flour on his lover's suit jacket. "I love you," he murmurs, pulling back so he can see Sam's eyes. "So fucking much."

"I love you too," Sam says, relieved, hugging Ryan close. "You mean the world to me."

"I know." It's true, Ryan does know, and that fact goes a long way towards reassuring him. He eases back with a last kiss. "If you two crazy kids can manage to keep your clothes on for half an hour more, then dessert will be finished baking and we can do whatever you want."

"Okay, but why don't you let me know how you feel then too," Sam says. He smiles. "We can figure out some kind of signal and I can handle the explanation if you don't want to do this tonight."

"What, like this?" Ryan asks, drawing his finger beneath his chin like he's slitting his throat. "That's subtle."

Sam laughs. "No. But you could touch your collar when we're done dessert if you're up for playing around."

"Touching the collar means 'yes', got it," Ryan agrees. "Now go back to the table, or our guest will worry she's not wanted. I just have to fill these and put them in the oven," he says, indicating the tart shells arranged on a pan in front of him.

"Okay. Love you," Sam says again, giving Ryan one more kiss before he heads back into the dining room. "Sorry about that," he tells Jessica. "Ryan's just putting the finishing touches on dessert."

Turning away from the wide window and the spectacular ocean view beyond, Jessica gives Sam a tentative smile. Her second Bloody Mary is long gone. "Everything okay?" she asks softly. "Should I go? I'm so sorry if I made trouble between you two."

"You didn't make any trouble. I did, with my big mouth, but we're good now," Sam says, motioning for Jessica to sit back down. "I'm sorry. I spoke out of turn about Ryan's personal business and I just got into way too much information, period."

"Okay." She's still not sure if staying is the right course of action, but she decides to give it another few minutes of evaluation. Pulling her chair back from the table, she sits down again. "You do have a very big mouth," she agrees with a smile.

"Hey. Not usually I don't," he says, pretending to be wounded. "Unless you mean that in a different way," he teases, eyes sparkling again. "Can I get you another drink or some water?" he asks, motioning at her glass.

"Um, I think some water would probably be good at this point," Jessica answers with a wry twist of her lips. Whether she's going or staying, beginning to drink off some of the volume of vodka she's consumed is probably a wise idea.

"I'll be right back," Sam says, going back into the kitchen. "I'm just grabbing a couple of waters," he tells Ryan, pulling the pitcher from the fridge. "You want one?"

"Yes, please," Ryan answers, busy spooning fresh strawberry filling into the pastry circles. "Is Jessica okay? Is she staying?"

"She seems to be." Sam pours three glasses and puts the pitcher back in the fridge. "I think she's staying. I told her she should. That any weirdness was my fault," he adds, glancing over his shoulder at his lover, hoping things really are smoothed out between them. "Do you want your water in here or at the table?"

"Um. Table's fine," Ryan answers. He finishes each tart by brushing it with a light sugar glaze, then pops the pans into the oven. Piling mixing bowls into the sink he tells himself he'll deal with them tomorrow, so he just washes his hands and goes out to rejoin his lover and their guest once more.

Sam smiles at Ryan when he comes back in. "I was just telling Jessica about your work on Aidan Scott's new album. The time you spent in Ireland," he says, obviously proud of his lover.

"I actually have his last CD. Marks on the Window?" Jessica says, giving Ryan a smile and hoping everything is really as smoothed-over as Sam promised. "Did you write for that one?"

"Yeah, I did. I wrote, like, half of that one," Ryan replies, grinning shyly. He loves being able to say that, but it still gets to him. "I get thanked in the liner notes and everything," he says with a laugh.

"That is _so_ cool!" she enthuses, her eyes lighting up. "So that explains the piano in the living room. I knew there was no way Sam went near it."

"Oh, he's not allowed," Ryan tells her solemnly, carefully not looking at his lover.

Sam laughs and shakes his head. "You two are gonna gang up on me, aren't you?"

"Now there's an idea," Ryan murmurs, tongue firmly in cheek. "You could be the one in the middle."

"Ooh." Picturing it, Jessica licks her lips. "That is not a bad idea at all."

Sam thinks for a moment, picturing it in his head. "I could go for that," he says with a nod.

"Whoa, wait. Are we serious? Ryan would be fucking you?" Jessica sits up straight and shakes her head. "Uh-uh, no. If he fucks you then I want to be able to watch."

Ryan, meanwhile, is reeling yet again -- this time because he was _joking_ , for fuck's sake. Sam surprises him endlessly.

"There's no reason we can't do both," Sam says with a smile and a soft laugh. "If you're willing to wait for us to recover enough to make good on our original plan."

"I can be a very patient woman, when it's called for," she assures him. Then she grins at Ryan. "Sam told me you slept together pretty much the second you met. You didn't date at all? No slow build-up of unresolved sexual tension?"

Ryan raises an eyebrow at her questions. "Guys... that's not really how guys do things. We fuck first, and get to know each other later."

"Get the important stuff out of the way first," Sam quips but he's laughing, clearly joking. Mostly.

"Hmm." She gives Sam an arch look, then tells Ryan, "Yeah, I didn't get any wine and roses from this guy either. He just came knocking on my door one night."

Sam shrugs a little. "I never really dated, period," he says. "And there was this chemistry, so why beat around the bush?"

Jessica coughs. Ryan just groans, which makes her laugh. "It's so nice to know I was being treated just like one of the guys," she says.

Ryan grins, thinking of a few particular details of his own first encounter with Sam. And he suspects that maybe Jessica didn't get the _full_ treatment, whatever she thinks. The kitchen timer beeps and he gets to his feet. "Be right back."

"Would things have turned out any differently if I'd brought you flowers and taken you to dinner?" Sam asks Jessica. "In terms of us sleeping together?"

"Hmm." She taps a painted fingertip against her mouth. "I probably would've worried you were a lot more serious about me than I was ready to be about you. It might actually have put a damper on things. I would have gotten all those warning signs, and started hitting the brakes so that I could let you down easy..." She laughs at the idea.

"See? There you go," Sam says with a laugh. He smiles, running a finger down his water glass. "What I have with Ryan? I've never had that before. He gets me in a way no one else does, or ever has."

She tilts her head, watching him with a soft smile playing on her lips. "Did you see that going in? I mean, is that why you pursued him, not just for the casual sex in the beginning?"

"You mean from the get-go or after the first time?" Sam asks.

"Um." She frowns at him, perplexed, and then shrugs. "When did you figure out you wanted to keep him around?"

"I was slow in figuring it out," Sam says, taking a sip of water. "I think I didn't want to admit it. I had a lot of shit to work out. But I knew he was different almost right away. And then we both pulled some dickhead moves but luckily we didn't fuck things up completely."

"Don't listen to him, he's trying to take all the credit," Ryan cuts in, coming back into the dining room and laying a fragrant strawberry tart, laden with whipped cream, in front of Sam. He puts one in front of Jessica next, then calls over his shoulder as he goes to fetch his own, "I was the one who chose _him_."

Jessica snorts a laugh and picks up her fork, but manages to restrain herself from digging in until Ryan rejoins them and takes his seat. "Is that true, Sam?"

"Maybe," Sam says with a laugh. "He was more willing to admit how he felt sooner than I was."

"Because I couldn't resist you," Ryan murmurs, leaning over to nuzzle Sam's throat. "I couldn't help telling you how much in love with you I was."

Jessica blinks, touched by the sudden display of affection. After the R-rated conversation they've been having, tenderness between her two hosts was really the last thing she was expecting. It's very sweet.

Sam grins and turns his head so he can kiss Ryan. "Yeah. I just bought this house," he says with a laugh, mostly at his own expense.

"And it was a very big commitment for you, I understood that," Ryan agrees with a grin. He gives up any semblance of behaving anymore - hell, Jessica said she wanted to see this, right? - and pushes Sam's chair away from the table so he has enough room to climb into his lover's lap.

Hands spanning Ryan's thighs, Sam rubs his thumbs over the inseam of his lover's trousers. He grins up at him, leaning in to capture his lover's mouth in his, tongue diving between his lips.

Pausing with her fork halfway to her mouth, Jessica stares. _Oh. God._ They are so fucking gorgeous together, better than she'd been expecting. Because her imagination didn't nearly live up to the reality of this.

Ryan moans softly and puts his hands in Sam's hair. "I love the way you taste," he whispers, sucking on his lover's bottom lip.

"Yeah?" Sam licks into Ryan's mouth, biting at his tongue. "Tell me what else you love," he says, the words murmured against Ryan's jaw, teeth grazing the skin, his hands sliding upwards, under his lover's shirt, skating over his nipples, his piercings.

Whimpering a little, Ryan arches his back and grinds against Sam. "Love the way you touch me. The--" he cuts himself off before he says too much in front of their guest.

Dipping her finger into the whipped cream on her dish, Jessica slowly licks it off, then sucks on her finger as she watches them.

Sam grins and pulls his hands from Ryan's shirt, slowly unbuttoning the buttons, the sides pushed back, shifting them both so Jessica has a better view.

Her eyes widen when she sees the piercings, black captive beads against tanned skin. And she instantly wants to touch, tug, curious about how Ryan would respond.

"Should we move?" Ryan whispers against Sam's throat, wary of getting much more involved out here, at the dinner table. "Somewhere our guest would be more comfortable?"

"Bedroom?" Sam suggests. God knows they aren't going in the playroom. Definitely not with Jessica.

"Yeah." Ryan nods, easing back with a last lick of Sam's throat. Getting to his feet, he looks at Jessica, who is watching them intently. "Do you... do you want to come to bed with us?" he asks her, his cheeks coloring faintly. "I don't want to just assume." 

_So sweet_ , she thinks, and smiles. Since Ryan seems much more comfortable now... "I'd love to," she answers.

Sam leads the way, turning the lights on upstairs as he goes. "You sure you still want to watch us first?" he asks, checking in with Jessica.

"For a bit," she says, her smile mischievous. "I love your house, by the way," she says as she peels off her sundress, tugging it off over her head and tossing it to the bedroom floor.

"Oh, thanks!" Ryan exclaims, grinning. "I mean, we can't take credit for the view, obviously, but we--" he turns to tell her about the fun he and Sam had choosing the artwork for their home, and his eyes widen at the sight of Jessica standing there wearing nothing but black lace underwear and high heels. "Um." His gaze drops to the floor and he quickly shrugs his own shirt off, then starts on his trousers.

Sam actually takes the time to hang up his jacket but then tosses his shirt in the hamper and his jeans over their dresser. He grins at Ryan's reaction to Jessica's near-nakedness and takes a good long look himself. Christ, he's a lucky man. "You are both so fucking hot," he says, shaking his head, figuring it doesn't hurt to say it.

"I was just thinking the same thing," she murmurs, trying not to be obvious that she's nearly _drooling_ over Ryan's naked body. "Oh my god, are you, like, CGI?" she asks, her fingers itching to reach out and touch all those cut muscles. "And you-- _oh_. Oh, wow." She stares at the ring piercing the thick head of his cock. "Didn't that hurt like hell?" 

Ryan shrugs, then nods. It feels like his entire body is blushing. "Yeah, it really did. But only for a couple minutes."

"He can leave it in while he fucks me," Sam says, watching her expression, her reaction to Ryan. Her attention doesn't trigger the same kind of gut "mine" response that another man's would. Just simple pride. "If you want to see that..."

"Wait, are you serious?" she asks Sam. "With _that?_ " It's hard to quell a shudder. "It doesn't, I don't know, rip you up inside?"

Christ. Maybe he's been spending too much time with kinky lovers and friends lately. Sam shakes his head. "No, not at all. It feels incredible actually," he adds, smiling at Ryan.

"Wow." Jessica blinks, then smiles. "You two are blowing my mind already. I mean, yes. Yes, I want to see that," she laughs. God, yes.

Ryan gives her a crooked grin, still feeling quite a bit shy. "And there's my tattoo, also," he says, not wanting her to scream out in shock when he's busy focusing on Sam. "Um. You really can't miss it..." He turns his back on her, his hands fisted tightly at his sides.

"Are we freaking you out too much?" Sam asks gently. There's no way of explaining Ryan's tattoo, not that he can think of, not without getting into stuff they really don't want to get into.

She stares at him, still reeling over that _massive_ tattoo on Ryan's _ass_ , holy shit. "Do you have any?"

"Not yet," Sam says, shaking his head. "I'll get a small one at some point but with work and all, we haven't got there yet."

"...Okay." She nods slowly, taking another long look at Ryan. Giving him a smile, she reaches up and eases the pins out of her messy bun, shaking out her hair. "Ready when you are," she says with a grin, sitting down in one of the comfortable armchairs angled by the wide windows.

Grinning back, Sam crooks a finger at Ryan and then pulls him into his arms, kissing him slowly, thoroughly.

Ryan moans softly, melting immediately into the kiss. Sam always knows just how to touch him. Ryan wraps his arms around his lover, tasting him, beginning to gently rub against him.

Sam licks into Ryan's mouth, sucking on his tongue and rubbing back, their cocks sliding together.

"You sure you want this?" Ryan whispers, making sure his voice is pitched low enough for only Sam to hear. He slips his hand down to cup Sam's ass. "You want me to fuck you in front of her? I'd understand if not."

"I'm good with it if you are," Sam whispers back, biting softly at the juncture between shoulder and throat.

Ryan groans and tilts his head to the side, baring his throat. Sam fucking knows how fast that gets to him, and his cock swells to full hardness in moments. "Do you want to prep yourself?" he asks, both hands moving restlessly over Sam's ass now. "Or do you want me to do you?"

Sam shakes his head. "You do me," he murmurs.

Biting his bottom lip, Ryan grins. "I'd love to. But are you going to be okay with me tongue-fucking your ass for an audience?"

"No." Sam grins too. "Use your fingers."

Ryan pouts. Granted, it's for all of two seconds, and then he's yanking open the bedside drawer and selecting a bottle of lube. "On your back?" he asks Sam, making it clearly a question in front of Jessica.

Sam nods and climbs onto the bed, spreading his legs a little, his hands under his head.

Watching, Jessica uncrosses her legs, then crosses them again. She never would have thought to see this side of Sam -- so to speak, anyway. Then again, Ryan doesn't strike her as a 'typical' bottom anyway; so much for stereotypes. "You know, Sam," she says, breaking the silence as Ryan slicks up, "if you'd wanted me to stick a finger up your ass while I was blowing you," she licks her lips, "you could've just said so."

Intimate as the image is, it just strikes Ryan funny, and he shoots her a crooked grin before kneeling between Sam's spread thighs and pressing two fingers to rub around the rim of Sam's tight hole.

Sam laughs and shakes his head, hissing in a soft breath as Ryan touches him. There's a joke or two skirting his lips but he keeps shut. The last thing he needs to do is step wrong here, now.

"Come to think of it, I don't think you ever asked me for that, either," Ryan points out softly, although he's always been the type to push and try to take what he wanted, so long as he wasn't deep in subspace. His grin winks at his lover, and he pushes two fingers into the heat of Sam's body with a groan.

Jessica echoes him with a soft moan. _Fuck_ , this is hot.

"I'm too focused on your mouth when you're blowing me," Sam says, eyes crinkling at their corners, his body clamping down instinctively around Ryan's fingers.

Ryan's smile widens, and he braces on one elbow to lean down and slowly lick between his lover's lips. He pushes a third slippery finger inside Sam and works them in and out, taking his time and feeling his cock throb with anticipation.

Sam groans into the kiss, hands going to Ryan's shoulders, stroking over his back, his body slowly giving way.

Her lips part, breath coming faster, and Jessica trails a hand down to press between her legs. Ryan kneels up and slicks his cock with lube, and she begins to rub her clit through her black lace panties.

All Ryan's focus is on Sam. He nips at his lover's throat and starts to push inside, gritting back a moan at how fucking good it feels.

"Oh, fuck," Sam breathes, nails digging into Ryan's shoulders. It hurts initially but the feeling quickly passes, fading into a dull burning pleasure.

Slow and steady, Ryan works his way in. But once he's all the way there... He blows out a breath and draws back, nearly out. And slams back in, grabbing Sam's knees and pushing them up so he can penetrate even more deeply.

Sam shouts, his cock jerking violently between them. He grabs Ryan's ass and pulls him deeper still, groaning as Ryan's P.A. rubs right over his prostate.

With a gasp Jessica pushes two fingers inside her pussy, wet and hot. She's avidly watching the show, fingering her clit and so close to letting go.

Ryan drops his head back, the muscles of his body straining as he thrusts into his lover again and again, and every time Sam rises to meet him it's a moment of complete possession. "You close?" he asks breathlessly, angling just right to drag his piercing against those sensitive nerves again.

"Yeah." Sam nods, shoving a hand between them, gripping and working his cock. "Kiss me," he demands, arching up into the next thrust with a cry.

With a groan Ryan drops down on his hands, dipping to kiss Sam hard, licking and sucking at his mouth, _claiming_ him just as thoroughly as with his body. He smothers a cry in Sam's mouth, his hips pumping and pleasure lighting him up as he empties into his lover.

That thick searing rush shoves Sam over the edge and he matches Ryan's cry, hands gripping his lover's ass, keeping him deep inside as they shudder through the aftershocks.

With a last soft gasp Jessica lets her hands fall limply against her thighs, lingering lightning flashes from her own climax sparking through her.

"I love you," Ryan whispers, kissing along Sam's stubbled jaw. "You are so amazing."

"I love you too," Sam whispers back, twisting his head to get his mouth on Ryan's. "So fucking much."

Ryan grins against Sam's lips and lingers over the kiss, savouring the taste of his lover and these last moments inside him. A soft indrawn breath suddenly reminds him that they're not alone, however, and he glances up to find Jessica on her feet, her gaze darting around and seeming to look anywhere in the room but at them.

She feels Ryan's eyes on her and gives him a quick, nervous smile. "Sorry, I... I'm just grabbing my things and I'll get out of your way," she says, because she's pretty sure that she has overstayed her welcome.

"No, don't go," Ryan says softly, easing back to his knees. "We're being rude, I'm sorry."

Sam pushes up to his elbows and nods towards the bed beside them. "Come join us. Seriously."

Jessica narrows her eyes doubtfully at Sam, then figures that he's never lied to her before. She sits down next to them and looks at Ryan in silent question, then leans down to kiss Sam gently on the lips.

Sam reaches up, sliding a hand into her hair and deepening the kiss. "I like the lingerie," he says with a smile, licking softly into her mouth. "You look fucking gorgeous."

"Thank you," she says, settling a bit more comfortably onto the bed. And she's careful to include Ryan in her answering grin. "I didn't know I was going to get lucky tonight. I'm just glad my bra matches my panties."

Ryan huffs a soft laugh. "Now there's a problem I've never encountered before," he says, then gets a faraway look in his eye as he sits down on Sam's other side, grabbing a handful of tissues to swab his lover's stomach clean. "No, wait. There was that one time...".

Sam grins. "Not with me there wasn't," he teases, hooking his foot over Ryan's ankle before reaching for Jessica again, pulling her closer and kissing her a little more firmly. 

"Nah, you're not that kinky," Ryan murmurs, and just barely manages not to choke on his own tongue. But safely out of Jessica's sight, his eyes are dancing as he looks at his lover.

Sam almost laughs - Christ - but instead he pulls both of them closer, kissing one and then the other.

This is much more comfortable, lying down with the two men on their absolutely massive bed and taking turns with Ryan in exploring Sam's mouth. Jessica kisses along Sam's throat, grinning at the feel of the rough stubble. And she lets one hand roam, mapping the planes of Sam's chest and slowly working her way down. Just out of curiosity as to what his recovery time is like these days.

Sam groans, biting at Ryan's mouth as Jessica kisses his throat, his cock already starting to harden again before he's even fully soft. Christ. "You're both gonna be the death of me," he murmurs.

Jessica giggles and Ryan grins. But he's still anxious about making this as good for her as it's sure to be for them. "Do you want Sam to go down on you?" he asks softly, meeting her eyes. "Do you want him to prep you?"

"Prep me?" she echoes, like she's not sure she heard him right. She looks at Sam in question. "Would you do that?" The guys she was with that one time, so long ago... They wanted to fuck her in the ass, sure. But they flat refused to put their fingers in there.

"Yeah, of course," Sam says. "You've never had...?" He doesn't even bother finish the question. Of course not. Not when she's looking at him like that. "Lay back," he orders, shifting from between them.

Ryan eases out of the way and Jessica lies back, although she's a little nervous. But her insides are starting to dance in excitement just the same.

"First, let's get rid of this," Sam says, reaching under her to unclasp the back of her bra and draw it off, her gorgeous breasts spilling free. He slides his hands up her stomach, cupping them in his palms, thumbs rubbing over the nipples, taking his time.

She moans softly in pleasure and relaxes beneath Sam's touch, even as fresh desire starts to rush through her blood. "Do you remember what I like?" she asks, her tone cheeky. With the way Sam is touching her, her instinct is to flirt, and work that fun vibe they always had between them on the few occasions they hooked up. But this time is so massively different, and Jessica is working to stay aware of Ryan - the Great Unknown - uncertain just how he's going to react to any interaction between her and his lover.

And it is awkward for Ryan, but then, he'd known that it would be. He lies on his side, next to the couple but carefully not touching them. He tells himself it's just because there's no fucking way that he himself is going to prep Jessica's ass and so it's good that Sam's all over it... but also, yeah -- it's fucking hard to watch his lover with someone else. A gorgeous female someone else, in particular. That part hasn't changed.

"I think so," Sam grins, hooking his thumbs through the sides of her panties and drawing them down her legs. "You be sure and tell me if I don't though." He tosses the panties onto the floor and gives Ryan's calf a squeeze, making sure his lover knows he's still aware of him, always aware of him.

Ryan glances down at the squeeze, and smiles at his lover. Sam... Sam is just so fucking gorgeous. radiating sexual power and so clearly in his element. Ryan traces a finger over his cock, still soft from fucking his lover but beginning to swell again. And he watches.

"Yeah, I'll tell you," Jessica mutters, grinning down at Sam. "I'll tell you with my thighs around your neck. Because you don't have any hair to pull, again."

Sam laughs, ducking down to suck a nipple into his mouth, his hands caressing her breasts, his cock already hard between her thighs.

She moans and wraps her legs around him, shivering at the play of his tongue over sensitive flesh.

Moving between her breasts, Sam licks and sucks and teases each nipple, letting his teeth graze the rigid nubs as roughly as he dares before he slips lower, mouth moving over her stomach, her hipbones, closer and closer...

Jessica wriggles beneath him, impatient and excited. And it's automatic to reach for his hair, but she groans with frustration when she's reminded that it's too short to yank on.

Watching, Ryan chuckles. "Yeah," he tells her, "I know what you mean. He looks so fucking hot, though."

Aware of the conversation above him, Sam just chuckles, head moving between Jessica's thighs, tongue seeking out her clit, licking around and over it, more and more firmly.

"Oh! Oh god yes. Yes," Jessica gasps, shutting her eyes and arching against the bed. "Fingers," she orders, "oh god! Need your fingers inside me."

Sam reaches for the lube and slicks up his fingers. It might not be what she means, but it's what she's getting, he thinks as he gives her just the slightest hint of teeth, rubbing the pad of one slick finger around her hole.

Ryan is just relaxing back on his elbows, anticipating a long wait. But then Jessica damn near jumps off the bed, startling all of them.

"Oh, god," she cries out, and claws at Sam's shoulders with an unintelligible moan.

Fuck yeah. Sam slowly pushes that one finger inside her, his mouth never once letting up on her clit.

She moans again, rocking on his finger. "Harder," she whispers, wriggling to take him deeper. "Just... close..." Jessica convulses around him, arching against the bed and dissolving into her climax.

Sam keeps licking but gentles his touch, slowly slipping a second finger inside her. He licks lower, into her, tasting her juices, his face wet with them. Aware of Ryan watching them, unsure of his lover's reaction.

Ryan is... stunned, really. Confused and jealous and lustful, all at once. Sam is obviously very very good at what he's doing right now - no big surprise there - and there's no way for Ryan not to wonder if his lover misses this, being with a woman, filling his hands with the curves of her body and licking deep inside her until she shivers and screams. At the same time, though, it's so hot to watch, Sam's intensity making Ryan _want_ , even when he himself isn't the target.

"Oh, god," Jessica whispers, lifting her hands to cup and squeeze her breasts. "Oh, god. Need you. Need you inside me."

"We're getting there," Sam says, lifting his head, easing a third finger inside her and slowly stretching her open for Ryan. "You'll have both of us soon," he promises, grinning at his lover.

Like he's hypnotized, that smile jerks an answering crooked grin out of Ryan. He simply can't deny the forceful pull of his lover. Scooting down the bed, he slips his hand around Sam's nape and kisses his lover, licking into his mouth and tasting the unfamiliar flavor.

Sam groans at that, unsure as he was about how Ryan would feel tasting Jessica on him. "You ready?" he asks Ryan when they break for breath, his fingers still inside Jessica, his thumb gently rubbing over her clit. "What about you?" he asks her, grinning at them both.

"God yes, I'm ready!" Jessica insists, clamping down hard on Sam's fingers.

Chuckling softly, Ryan slowly licks over Sam's bottom lip. "I'm ready."

"Then I'm on the bottom and you're in the middle and Ryan gets to be on top again," Sam says with a grin, easing his fingers free and shifting up the bed so he can reach into their nightstand for a couple of condoms.

Jessica squirms impatiently when Sam stops touching her, even though she knows it's for a damn good reason. She pushes herself to a sitting position and claws her tangled hair out of her eyes, then gives Ryan a smile and a little shrug. "He's really really good at that."

"I kind of figured," Ryan replies, smiling back and taking the rubber Sam hands him. "Our Sam was quite a slut in his younger days," he teases playfully, knowing that he might well be earning himself a smack... for later.

Sam snorts, but his eyes are sparkling as he rolls on the other condom and flops down on his back, crooking a finger at Jessica.

She grins at him mischievously, raising an eyebrow as she prowls up the length of his body. Licking her lips, she gives a little hum of pleasure and rubs her pussy against his erection, shivering at the sparks of pleasure lighting up her clit all over again.

Sam grasps her hips and pulls her into place, lining up and pushing deep with a groan. Fuck. It's been a while with a woman and he'd almost forgotten how they felt, so soft and warm and wet. He slides his hands up to her breasts, cupping them, his thumb rubbing over the nipples again. Watching the pleasure dance across her face.

"Oh god, that's good," Jessica sighs, shutting her eyes and slowly riding him, focusing on every smooth slide inside her.

Ryan swallows hard, his skin crawling at the sight of them together. He looks away, out the window, not wanting Sam to notice or get distracted from what he's doing.

"Yeah. Really good," Sam breathes, but his eyes are open and on Ryan. He touches his lover's knee. "Now we just need to get Ryan in here," he says with a smile, determined they'll talk about this, all of this, later.

Shrugging a little, Ryan gives his lover a crooked grin -- and he just prays it doesn't look as awkward as it feels. "You sure about this?" he asks softly, reaching out to touch Jessica's hair.

"Yeah. Absolutely," she answers, giving him a smile over her shoulder. "Just... go slow?" she asks, and takes a deep breath. "It's been a couple years since I've done this."

"Okay." Ryan nods and glances at Sam before he kneels up. He looks at his lover again - gaze playing over the heavy muscles of Sam's thighs, his chest, his arms - before he carefully slicks the condom on. "I've, ah. It's been about fifteen years since I've done this with a girl," he admits wryly. "A woman, sorry."

Jessica grins at him again. "It's okay," she murmurs. "I trust you."

"And you should. He'll make it good for you," Sam says, smiling at Ryan. Hoping his lover really is okay with this and it's not another fuck-up like the girls back home that time.

"Don't know about that," Ryan murmurs, bemused by Sam's vote of confidence. "I don't think I can use the same tricks on her that I use on you."

"Ooh, are there tricks?" she asks, taking Sam's cock in to the hilt and then resting there, her breath hitching a little as she leans forward to brace her hands on the bed.

"You bet," Ryan answers, laying one hand on her hip. "And I'm not telling you a single one, because then you might use them," he teases.

She giggles but then tenses at the feel of his cock pressing against her hole. "Sorry," she whispers, and consciously tries to relax.

Ryan nods. "It's okay," he says softly, carefully pushing in just a few fractions. "Tell me to slow down if you need to."

Sam groans and then curses under his breath. Ryan's pushing inside instantly makes Jessica that much tighter around his cock. He laughs. "I might be the one telling you to slow down."

"You've already come once," Ryan points out with a soft laugh. "I'm sure you can control yourself better than that." Yeah, he's pushing his luck, he knows. But with Jessica as - literally - a shield between them, Ryan's having a little fun.

Jessica moans as Ryan pushes his cock deeper into her ass. "Oh, my god," she gasps, unaccustomed to feeling so intensely full, so many sensitive nerve endings stimulated all at once. "Oh god, yes. Please move."

"Like this?" Ryan asks, slowly sliding out to the crown, then easing inside again, deeper this time.

Sam gives Ryan a look which (teasingly) says he'll be paying for things later, but the next push and the next moan from Jessica put an end to that. He rubs his thumb over her clit, watching the pleasure play across her features as they both push in deep.

In mere seconds Jessica is shoved right past the boundary of language, and she can do nothing but gasp as she's filled and whimper for more.

_Fuck_ , Ryan thinks. In a moment like this, he's pretty sure he's seeing Jessica as Sam sees her: gorgeous, uninhibited, and undeniably sexy. It kind of scares the hell out of him. He nudges deeper inside her with a groan, nearly fully sheathed now, and leans down to brace on one elbow, licking into his lover's mouth. Taking every molecule of want and need and wicked desire and giving it all to Sam.

Their tongues tangle and Sam groans, his cock throbbing inside Jessica, Ryan's felt through the thin wall separating them. It's incredible and he groans even deeper, the sound rumbling in his chest. _Christ._

Jessica whimpers again, blearily watching from up close as the men kiss. _So. Hot._ She hitches her hips - best as she can when sandwiched between them - and rubs her clit against Sam, then shudders and cries out as she comes again.

When her body tightens like that, Ryan is caught completely off guard. He's coming before he realizes it, pumping deep inside her, feeling his lover _through_ her, and burying his face in the crook of Jessica's neck.

Fuck. Whether he's already come or not doesn't matter. Not when Ryan and Jessica both look and feel like that. Sam follows them over, climax slamming into him like a fucking freight train.

Ryan's breath hitches hard and he kisses Sam again, then nuzzles his lover's throat before he pushes himself up, not wanting to crush their guest between them. Laying one hand on the small of Jessica's back, he takes careful hold of the rubber and eases out of her ass.

She gasps at the sudden emptiness, nearly as painful as the penetration first was. Then she moans and lets herself collapse completely against Sam.

"You okay?" Sam asks, the question meant for both his lovers, his eyes on Ryan over Jessica's head.

"Mmm. Mm-hmm." Jessica works her arms beneath Sam and clings to him, trying to ward off the inevitable hollow feeling that follows an encounter as intense as this. She knows Sam isn't hers, and she knows Ryan might well want to be in her place right now. So she's making sure she clings for the brief moment they'll permit.

"I'm good," Ryan whispers, returning to the bed with a warm damp cloth in his hand, as well as another handful of tissues to take care of Sam's condom. He lies down next to his lover, and presses a kiss to Jessica's shoulder. "Thank you. You were amazing."

"You're gonna spend the night, yeah?" Sam says, tightening his arms around her. Making sure she knows he means the invitation.

"Are you sure it's okay?" she asks softly, lifting her head to look at Ryan. She's surprised to see him smiling at her.

"Yes, absolutely," Ryan murmurs, and strokes his hand lightly down her back. He recognizes the vulnerable uncertainty in Jessica's eyes; he feels it so often himself, and he wouldn't dream of throwing her out on the street to deal with it on her own. "Relax and let us take care of you. We want you to stay."

"Listen to him," Sam tells her, smiling at Ryan. "He never says anything he doesn't mean. Besides which, you can't miss the fantastic breakfast he'll cook us in the morning."

"Breakfast, really?" Jessica asks, finally relaxing enough to slip to her side next to Sam, although she doesn't let go of him.

"I promise that there will be succulent vegan offerings," Ryan tells her soberly, his hand spread over his heart.

"Mmm, you had me at 'succulent vegan,'" she teases, grinning at him.

"And bacon," Sam says. "You don't have to eat it, but you have to let me have it," he tells her, grinning, his eyes sparkling, his other arm wrapped around Ryan, pulling him in close.

She sighs dramatically. "The price of an evening well-spent," she says with a wink at Ryan, and snuggles in.


End file.
